Departments

Drama

Drama forms a valuable part of community life at Marlborough. Performers work with outstanding teachers to hone their skills, rehearse pieces and, ultimately, to face the challenge of performance. Drama is both exuberant and rigorous; standards are high and much is expected of those who undertake this testing but fulfilling process.

The Drama Department works under the direction of the Head of Drama. The department comprises two full time teachers as well as a full-time technical team; production manager, lighting designer and costume designer. The graduate director-in-residence program allows the students to work with young professionals at the cutting edge of theatre practice.

Theatre Spaces

The Department works principally in two well equipped spaces. The Bradleian Theatre is excellent as a teaching room and doubles as a 135-seat studio theatre. This space is ideal for the performance of pupils' own work and for the hosting of the professional touring companies that visit the College several times each year.

The Ellis Theatre boasts an exciting and distinctive atmosphere and can be converted into a variety of stage formats. In a conventional end-stage configuration, it accommodates just over 200; as a thrust stage it holds 360 and, as a theatre-in-the-round, it seats nearly 450 including almost 100 in the surrounding balcony. Pupils thus gain experience of performing in a variety of spaces.

Drama In the Curriculum

For well over a decade, the College's Drama Department has been teaching Drama in the curriculum both at GCSE and at A-Level, the latter being a notably challenging and richly stimulating course that broadens intellectual and conceptual horizons and develops performance and technical skills. Involving a fine balance of analytical, imaginative and practical work, curricular Drama demands mature discipline and a high level of motivation and commitment.